Sermon Tone Analysis

ATTN

I am a “night-binger.”

It hurts to say it and I hope you don’t lose all respect for me as a pastor, but there is something about sweets that makes them appealing after 8 pm.

Wave a doughnut in front of me at 10 am, and I have little trouble saying “no.”

Ice Cream at 12 pm hardly makes me turn my head.

Chocolate Chip cookies are more of a challenge, but usually, at 3 in the afternoon, I can find the strength to refuse.

But let the clock strike 8 in the evening, and the dietary Dr. Jeckyl becomes the gluttonous Dr. Hyde.

I eat and eat and keep on eating.

Then I go to bed and have trouble sleeping.

There’s something about chocolate and sleep that just doesn’t mix.

So, in my quiet time the other morning, I made a decision: I was going to cut out sweets, especially after supper.

I made up my mind and even prayed about it.

Then I came downstairs to discover that my wife had been cooking again.

This time she made brownies for a meeting we were having at lunch, after church on Sunday.

I was still resolute: No Sweets!

In fact, this would be a good test of my self-control.

I would refuse to eat them, even though they were sitting right in front of me.

How did I do?

Well, I did ok at 10 am.

I had no problem at 12 pm.

3 pm went by without a smidge of chocolate.

Then the clock struck 8 and testing became temptation.

Those brownies grew legs and walked right into my hands.

Then they grew wings and flew right up to my mouth.

One hour and 4 brownies later, I was headed to bed, once again, a victim of chocolate.

Have you been there?

Have you ever been tested in some area of weakness and have that testing turn into a temptation that leads you into sin.

Here’s what I know: If it happens with brownies, it can happen in more significant areas of life.

I remember a good friend of mine who was on fire for God and was even seeking to win others.

Through some circumstances in his life he became greatly disillusioned at church.

He went through a time of significant testing, but instead of trusting God he turned on God.

He left the church, went off into heavy drinking and drugs.

I tried to reach him but could not.

It was a couple of years later that one night I got a desperate call from him.

He had taken acid and was having hallucinations and he was afraid.

I went over and tried to help him.

I couldn’t believe that the road of temptation had led him to such an end.

You see, he was tested, but he allowed that testing to become a temptation that led him into sin.

BACKGROUND

Which, I believe, is what Jesus is talking about in His model prayer when He tells us that we should pray, “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.”

You remember, we’ve been talking about this prayer for several weeks now.

We looked at the logistics of prayer, then we talked about the intimacy of prayer when we learned to pray to our “Daddy” in heaven.

We learned about the worship of prayer when we learned to “Hallow the Name.”

We learned about the priority of prayer when we prayed for His Kingdom to come and His Will to be done.

We thought about the provision of prayer asking Him for our daily needs, and we explained the grace of prayer when we asked for and gave forgiveness.

Now we come to the last line of requests that we make of God.

Say it with me: The Lord’s prayer- “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil” Some have thought, from that phrase that we are to pray that God not allow any kind of testing to come into our lives, but a closer examination of scripture proves that this is not so.

Want a few references?

Well, in Matt 4:1, it reads: Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

Notice, He was lead by the Spirit in order to be tempted.

In James 1:2 we are told to even count it all joy when we encounter all kinds of trials because we know that the trying or testing of our faith brings endurance into our lives.

Why then, are we told by Jesus to ask God not to lead us into temptation?

Someone will say, “Well, there must be a difference between testing and temptation.

Maybe there’s one Greek word for “testing” and one for “tempting,” so that “testing” is something that God does that’s good and tempting is something that Satan does that’s bad.

Actually, that’s not correct.

In the Greek, the same word is used for both ideas.

Perisamos means “test” “tempt” and “try”.

I don’t think that’s an accident.

I believe that the same word is used because the same event can either be a test or a temptation.

You see, God does not tempt us to do evil.

James says as much in James 1:13, Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.

Hey!

If you’re being tempted to do something wrong this morning, never accuse God of tempting you.

He cannot and He will not.

But He will certainly try and test you to build your faith.

And here’s the amazing thing: The very same event that God uses to test you is often the very same event that Satan wants to use to tempt you to do evil.

If you have some grave illness in your life, God intends for that illness to be used to bring you closer to Him.

At the same time, Satan, your great enemy, intends to use that event to cause you to question God and reject your faith.

Whether it is one or the other is really up to us.

NEED

Now, if that is confusing to you, I really want you to listen this morning.

You see, this whole thing of tests and trials is the greatest problem most Christians have.

And because it is such an issue, it leads to many reactions.

In many cases, when testing comes, God’s sovereignty is accused.

We, knowing that God is in control of every circumstance, look at our problem find fault with God.

We say, “You put this tragedy on me and it is Your fault that I am going through this difficulty.”

The trying situation yields a harvest of bitterness.

That may be you.

You’ve been through the mill and, if you were honest today, you’re accusing God.

That’s what happens when testing comes, so often.

God’s sovereignty is accused.

And then, when testing comes, sometimes God’s passivity is excused.

This person really doesn’t fully accept the sovereignty of God because they think that somehow their trouble and their suffering must have gotten by God.

So they just kind of give God a pass, but the truth is they have all kinds of questions and no answers.

They have a very passive view of God and it causes them not to trust him.

But perhaps the worst result of testing is that, sometimes, God’s power goes unused.

This is the natural result of the first two.

When I am angry at God or when I doubt His control, I do not tap into His power and I am left to handle the testing on my own and, usually, handling it on our own does not end well.

In fact, it often leads to a spiritual disaster.

So, how can I change my approach?

How can I pray, with understanding and effectiveness, those eleven words that can help me conquer my trials?

How can I pray, “lead me not into temptation, but deliver me from evil.”

How can I overcome the temptation of testing?

Well, first,

DIV 1: YOU CAN UNDERSTAND THE TRUTH OF TESTING

EXP

There are three pretty clear truths implied in this instruction about prayer.

The first is this: Testing is God’s tool.

At first glance you may think that we are being told to pray that God not test us.

Other scripture argues against this conclusion.